


Life Among the Dead

by Amongthedeep



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Aged-Up Character(s), Aged-Up Pidge | Katie Holt, Alternate Universe - Zombie Apocalypse, Asian Character(s), Canon Disabled Character, Eventual Relationships, Eventual Romance, Female Pidge | Katie Holt, Female Pronouns for Pidge | Katie Holt, Hurt Shiro (Voltron), Japanese Shiro (Voltron), Korean Keith (Voltron), M/M, Past Shadam - Freeform, Pidge | Katie Holt is a Good Friend, Protective Shiro (Voltron), SHEITH - Freeform, Shiro (Voltron) Has PTSD - Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, chinese fantasy is THE BEST, inspired by chinese web novels, shiro is paranoid, talk to me about chinese web novels and i'll love you forever, the holts are the best family to have at your back, this gonna be dark
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-11-11
Updated: 2018-11-11
Packaged: 2019-08-22 03:59:13
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,055
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16590443
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Amongthedeep/pseuds/Amongthedeep
Summary: A meteor crashes into Earth, spreading a new disease that slowly changes humanity and transforms them into rotting corpses.This is the start of it all.The story of how Takashi Shirogane finds love among the dead.





	Life Among the Dead

A day before the End came, a high fever spread throughout the shelter, as did coughing and yellow phlegm. Children were crying again. Even though the earthquakes had stopped, the tsunamis receded, they were not allowed to leave the shelter. Takashi fought with the soldiers every day, but his tags and military background did not get him any leeway. Not only they did not allow them to leave, they also did not tell them any news. The radio would come on once a day to give updates, but who could trust them? They'd lied about the meteorite, even though it had changed the skies into a blood red tone the closer it came, they told them it would not crash on Earth.

Such lies.

Since it had landed the Earth had gone awry. The shelters were jam-packed with people but they'd lost electricity, water, and even the air filters stopped running. Takashi was not surprised they were getting sick. His grandparents coughed continually, his parents fever did not go down, and his own fever made him hazy and weak. Yet he couldn't just give up, give in to whatever was wrecking his health. His right arm pain got worse with each day, but he gritted through the spasms because the soldiers did not give them medicine.

His sweat dripped to the floor, steaming up in a cloud, as he crouched and changed the towels for newly drenched ones on his family's forehead. Bracing himself, he walked slowly to the Holts, checking on Matt. His fever was quite high, while Katie's was just a mild one. He did the same for them, and for their parents. Samuel Holt's eyes opened, a hand grabbing Takashi's arm.

"Shiro," he croaked through dry lips. Takashi wetted his lips, hoping to make it easier for the Commander. "Promise me you'll take care of my kids if we don't make it."

Takashi hushed him. "Don't say that, you're going to be fine. They won't let us die, you're a Commander and I'm an ex-Officer from the Corps. It's gonna be okay."

Sam Holt laughed shallowly, followed by a coughing fit. "D-Don't... don't make me laugh, Shiro. I'm just an Officer, we're all low-ranks here. So promise me."

Sighing, Takashi nodded. "I promise. Now rest."

A dizzy spell hit Takashi, so he stumbled and got on his knees. Everything was murky and watery in front of his eyes, but he couldn't fall asleep. He needed to be awake to see what was happening. His parents were too old, as was his grandparents, and too sickly to do it in his stead. He groped around on his pockets and dialed Adam.

"What is it?" Adam's cold voice snapped.

"Hey, how is it going on your side?" Takashi closed his eyes and put his burning forehead on the cold floor, hoping to make him snap out of him.

"The earthquakes and tsunamis have stopped. Now there's this wave of sickness which you are aware of-" A coughing fit resounded, followed by a weak chuckle and a hoarse voice. "Things are bad, Takashi. You need to get out of the shelters, the government is in a uproar and those soldiers are not there to protect you."

Sighing, Takashi agreed. "Take care, Adam."

Adam sneered, "I don't need your unfounded worries, Takashi. Don't bother me with your holy saint personality."

Takashi gritted his teeth and turned off the call. He didn't feel much better, but he was wide awake now. He got up and went to the soldiers stationed at the door. Takashi could tell at a glance they were sick too. They wanted to appear nonchalant leaning against the walls, but it was for support, and their heavy-duty gear was soaked through with sweat.

Appealing to their own needs might get through to them, unlike their morals.

"We're sick, water is disappearing at a fast rate, there's no electricity, food is scarcing, meds are nowhere to be found anymore. We need to get out here. We need doctors, hospitals, care." Takashi was breathing too damn hard and shallow, his heart jack-rabbiting against his throat. _Focus on your breathing Shiro_ , his therapist voice echoed in his mind, _in and out, in and out_. Exhaling, Takashi went on. "We're gonna die here and you'll die too, you're already sick an-"

One of them turned the machine gun towards him. "Move. No one gets in, nobody gets out."

"Fine, but don't say I didn't warn you!" Takashi huffed off.

+++

Takashi took care of his family and the Holts as much as they could, but soon he collapsed to the floor. The cold seeped into him, his eyes unfocused. His throat was parched, he spoke but couldn't hear his own words through the ringing in his ears. The delirium took over him hard, but Takashi did not let himself fall asleep, close his eyes, lose consciousness. There were many that had been in coma for days now, he could NOT be one of them.

As time passed, the stifling air inside of the shelter lowered, Takashi could breathe again. He wrinkled his nose, it smelled bad like rotting food inside a turned-off refrigerator.

There was movement, Takashi could feel it but his body didn't have enough strength to move or hold him up. Hands were tugging at him from everywhere.

When his ears stopped ringing, he could hear growling and non-stop biting, screams, shouts, sobbing. What was going on? Even though he was dizzy he sat up and squinted at his surroundings. He almost screamed when he saw what was tugging at his clothes. Grey skin, yellow teeth, lank hair, sharp nails, dirty clothes. It was stuck to the ground with a fishing pole through its neck. Looking around, the shelter was in a uproar, the light of the shelter was coming and going from the outside. The door was wide open, the soldiers weren't there anymore. Bullet shells littered the floor. How had he not heard all of this?

Shuffling away through the commotion, shoving away these gross monsters, he arrived where he'd left their bags. Rummaging through, he found the fountain pen case and unlocked the secret compartment, transforming it into a gun. Was it legal? No. But was it needed? Yes.

Takashi shot through the head the rotting beast getting near his grandma.

"Not so paranoid anymore, eh?" Takashi called to his parents.

Grandma Shirogane stabbed an iron fork through the head of another. "What a bullet can do, a simple thing can too."

Takashi's Dad kicked through a crowd with the Holts behind them. "We need to leave. This place is crowded with those monsters, there was screams from outside after the soldiers fled, so I think things are the same outside.

Nodding, Takashi cut through the crowd with Matt's help at his back.

"I don't know what's going on, but we need to regroup and access if we need to leave to a military base for protection," Commander Holt said, smacking away one of the beasts with a baseball bat.

"Our house has a bunker underneath it, it'd be safer there with some tech help," Takashi grunted and used a iron poker to decimate the beast on his right. "I'm sure Matt, Katie and you could come up with all the installations we need."

When they reached the door, they closed it behind them and looked inside. It was carnage, there were body parts everywhere, trails smearing the white floors where blood hadn't.

"We should lock it," Commander Holt said, and looked at Takahi. "But it's your call, Shiro."

Shiro gritted his teeth, looked inside and turned away. "Leave it open, if they escape good, if they don't...we can just kill them after. Let's go!"

+++

Outside it was pandemonium. More of the creatures were everywhere, more blood, more entrails leaking out and stenching the air rotten.

"Don't look, Katie," Matt urged, covering where she was looking.

Katie pushed him away. "I already saw, okay? You don't need to hide it from me...not anymore."

Shiro put a hand on Matt's shoulder, and another in Katie's. "It's going to be okay. I need you both to do this for us. I don't know the first thing about air filters, water filters, electricity generators, solar charging and what not. I'll leave all that to you, I'm trusting you both, so go quickly."

"I'll go with them. If you don't mind, Shiro, but I'll keep an eye out for those stragglers."

Chuckling, Takashi waved him away. "Go on then, Commander."

Missus Holt, grabbed the poker on Takashi's hand and took it, beaming at her husband. "I'm going with you too."

With an exasperated sigh, Commander Holt took his family into their Jeep and left.

Takashi hushered his grandparents and parents into his Hummer, and tires squealing, went the other direction. The inner streets were more of less still peaceful, quiet and orderly. There weren't many of the creatures out on the outskirts of the city, nor humans.

Arriving home, Takashi ordered everyone to quickly take food, water, clothes, sheets, pillows, anything of value, into the bunker. He drove away, after getting his hidden stash of money, into supermarkets, gasoline posts and weapon shops. Whichever way he saw it, things were strange and help may not arrive. While things were calm they had to act, even if it meant robbery, assault, and breaking-in.

Takashi felt bad breaking down windows and doors, but to suit his guilty conscience he left money behind for both the things he took and the repairs of the doors he'd broken. This also meant others would not be able to get the same supplies he'd cleaned through, but Takashi clenched his jaw and did what had to be done. His family plus the Holts would mean a lot of supplies in the long run, he couldn't give in to pity when he thought of them.

His hummer was filled to the brim, but even then Takashi knew it wouldn't be enough. Leaning against the Hummer, he decided to call Adam to check up on him.

"Takashi, do you know how dangerous it is to call right now? The world has gone insane and you're doing your daily check up on me?"

Ignoring his tone, Takashi braved on. "We were fiance's Adam, I'd still like us to be friends. How are things on your side? Here there's man-eating creatures everywhere."

Adam sighed. "It's the same here. All the humans that didn't make through the high fever and sickness got...transformed. It's the only word for what this is. Takashi...no, Shiro. Don't call me anymore. It's dangerous and... we can't be friends, I'm sorry but... Just don't, okay? Take care."

Takashi held in his frustration and released a big sigh instead. _This is okay, I can't control others, and I can't make it so he's not mad and I can't make it so he likes me again. We broke up, I need to move on_. Takashi looked into the midnight sky tinted with a permanent dark-red tone since the meteorite and drove away.

Back and forth he went through the town and his house. Gathering as much as possible, leaving only mostly-empty shelves behind him and big piles of money in the cash registers.

+++

Opening the door to the bunker he was greeted with the smiling Holts and a bunch of equipment.

"I see you were successful. Good job team!" Shiro high-fived them, laughing. "I've also just brought back the rest of the supplies I've bought, we should be set for at least a few weeks. If we're careful we'll be set for months."

Katie was writing on a journal, and turned to him. "We've been talking it between us and we figured those creatures are zombies. Whatever that meteorite brought with it must have been a virus of some sort. It's in all of us now, and mutated us even if we can't see it yet. If it's like the popular knowledge, then their bite or scratch or bodily fluids coming in contact with us will trigger an unavoidable transformation into one of them. So, you aren't done Shiro. We needed padded clothes, especially leather or military-grade. Cotton will get ripped to shreds, and if that happens we'll be gone." She wrote down, pencil twirling. "We'll need visors or some biker helmets that cover not only eyes but mouth and nose too. Viral infections can enter through any open cavity. Oh, and it's best if you don't use guns. They get alerted by noise and go towards it, it's why when you shot your minigun all the others started swamping us."

"Um, " Takashi tried to interject but was shushed.

"I'm still talking!" Katie said exasperated, pencil tapping the pages of the journal. "If it's like this everywhere then nowhere is safe, not even military zones. They'll of course be faster at getting it under control than the population, but we also can't trust everybody. If there's a cut or a scratch or a bite, we need to eliminate the place before the infection spreads. We can try burning the wound to see what happens, but there's a higher chance that is is spread immediately upon contact into the blood-stream, either though cells or through the vessels. So while we can experiment, we can't do it on ourselves, obviously. The chances of the military sharing anything they discover is close to..." counting her fingers, Katie chuckled, "none, nil, nada, zilch. This town might get overrun by zombies faster than you believe. We were all sick for twenty to forty hours, maybe more maybe less, there's no way to know for sure without timing it precisely. The virus can't spread TOO fast, otherwise it'd die before making contact with the main element it needs to: the brain. Once it reaches the brain, and perhaps the heart too, there's zero chances of not turning. In that case, there'll be two options: the person kills themselves in order to not become a zombie too, or they'll have to let someone else do it an-"

"Or, we just let the person leave," Takashi interjected.

Katie frowned, rolled her eyes at him and grumbled. "Fine, yes. BUT. That's not the best idea nor outcome, but yes. It does exist. UGH. Shiro, we can't just let it be though, they'll kill others!"

Takashi closed his eyes and turned away. "It's non-negotiable, Katie. It has to be the person's choice, not yours and not mine. We will respect the little dignity we and these people have left."

Matt put a hand on his shoulder, laughing. "We get it, Shiro. Don't worry. She's just saying the most logical outcome, but if it was me or our parents she'd cry and wouldn't be able to do it.

"Matt!" Katie threw the journal she'd been writing down on at his head, which he quickly dodged while smirking.

They started arguing with each other, just like a cat and a dog.

Takashi felt a headache behind his eyes throb, and he pinched his nose and forehead willing it away. Which of course it didn't. Just like the spasms and permanent pain on his right arm never did either.

"I'll go fetch the clothes and gear you want then," Takashi said, thinking of the biker shop in town.

"No." Grandpa Shirogane's voice was low yet firm, which made it cut above Katie's and Matt's squabbling. "Let us have some face too. Rest."

Grandma Shirogane nodded. "Yes, Takashi, we are the older generation but we are still strong. You took care of us for many days without sleep nor care."

"It's dangerous out there!" Takashi contradicted, hands clenching into fists. "There's no need for you to put yourselves in danger, please. It's faster if I go."

"Takashi," his father's voice boomed, strict as ever. "You will listen to your seniors, and you shall show them the respect they deserve by letting them go do what they feel they must." He turned to his parents and said smiling. "We will join you by driving the Hummer and keeping things outside safe."

"Be safe, don't do anything rash. If it's dangerous then leave everything behind, it's not worth more than your lives," Takashi implored.

Off they went, both his parents and grandparents in all their righteous fury. Shiro sighed deeply, heart aching.

Commander Holt laugh echoed as he fiddled with one of the various equipment. "Now you know how they felt when you went to war without even telling them."

Takashi lightly chuckled and helped him carry one of the heavy boxes on the table. "To be honest, I'm still surprised they didn't burn me from the family's tree."

"Ah my boy, as if they ever could to their only grandson and son!" Commander Holt laughed. "No, Shiro, you made them proud of you every day."

Takashi's face turned cold as looked away. "Iraq wasn't properly what I'd call respectful nor proud. The things we did...I...Just..."

Commander Holt's hand was warm even through Takashi's fleece shirt. "You survived and came back a hero with a medal, you did what you had to do to survive. Just like you will have to do it now."

Takashi looked at him, eyes widening into horror, his heart palpitations awry. "I'll... _NEVER_ do the same things. Just... _NO_ , Commander. They can be beasts and creatures now but... but they were human... I won't, I won't!" Takashi shook his head and walked away to sit on a bed with a heavy thud. Takashi started chuckling until it turned into an ugly sneer, his eyes watering. "I just wanted to be on the research team but they..hahahaha...they took one good look at me and said I was perfect for the front-lines. I couldn't say no once I was accepted without being a deserter."

Commander Holt kept building the machine, and then after a while spoke. "The situation isn't the same, Shiro. I know all this might be bringing back unpleasant memories, but these zombies are not alive anymore. It is doing them justice by making sure they can never hurt anyone else. That's what we have to grab on to. Remember this."

"What if a vaccine is made? Can be made? What then?" Takashi laid on the bed, boots dangling off.

"You think there is any type of vaccine for them? No, Shiro. Whatever this sickness is, it has changed completely their bio-structure. If a vaccine is made it is for those before the change that have been bitten or scratched, not for those after the change. By then, I fear, it is far too late. But until then, and only then, Shiro, can we allow ourselves to be...merciful." Commander Holt shook his head and did a triumph shout and dance, which brought Katie and Matt over from outside.

"OOOOOHHHHH! This is a air filter, Shiro, and this here is a water filter," Katie nudged to one of the big boxes still to be mounted. "We've set up the solar panels, also the generator is up and running. We've installed a reservoir for rain water. All we need is to set up this baby," Katie patted the same box, "and we'll be good to go for a looong while."

Matt pulled her long ponytail and pushed her aside. "No, no. We need set up the upper parts of the houses into greenhouses so we can cultivate our own food, cause we'll run out faster if we don't do it." Matt grinned. "But you, Shiro, need to go rest like your parents told you to." Clapping his hands, he hurried Shiro into the bathroom for a shower and into bed for a nap. "We'll wake you when we need you, bye."

+++

Takashi woke with a groan, his right arm spasming and shooting pain straight to his skull, throbbing behind his eyes. Looking around, he was alone. Takashi frowned, got up by holding his right arm so tightly in his left arm his fingerprints were turning purple. He'd have bruises but it'd be worth it. He hobbled out from the bunker, into a sea of madness. Zombies were at their broken windows trying to get inside, hands trying to grab whatever they could. But it wasn't just one or two, it was dozens and dozens, perhaps hundreds of them What the heck had happened? And how long had he slept? Had it been months for the state of the house to be like this? The Holts were shouting, his parents were shouting, his grandparents were busy killing zombies. As one fell, two or three got on its spot and carrying on. They being swarmed from all sides.

"What happened!" Takashi screamed, got a knife from his leg holsters and started stabbing zombies sloppily with his left hand and kicking them out from the window. He almost got carried away when a couple hands grabbed his pants leg and started pulling.

Matt cut their hands and helped him get up. "We tried to wake you, but you slept like you were dead for a whole week. We were scared you were going to turn into one of those things." Matt talked but kept killing zombies as if he was an expert already. "While you were out of it we stormed through the town, getting more supplies and fixing the upper parts of the house into greenhouses but what we didn't expect...was that there'd be so many zombies. Almost the whole town has turned, we have to leave this place and NOW!"

Takashi nodded, formulating a plan in his mind as he helped Matt clear the south window. "We need to load the RV's, it's safer if we're travelling than being in the same spot for long. We have to take the SUV's too, for quicker travel. Have you loaded everything yet?"

Matt shook his head, grunting. "Go to the kitchen and get some of the clothes there, what you're wearing isn't suitable. The bunker has all been depleted, but the greenhouses and water reservoir and solar panels need to be taken down."

Takashi nodded again. "I'll do that then, I'll be right back and if everyone needs to, use the fire weapons."

"No!" Matt grunted. "That's how this happened. I shot one of them that was after Katie two days ago and now there's a swarm from everywhere. Just go."

Takashi hurried off, undressed as fast as he could and dressed while looking out from the windows of the porch. Their fence had always been tall, so the zombies outside couldn't get inside. But for how long? This place was bursting with them, they had to clear them. If he remembered right...there'd been some grenades and bombs. In order to flee they'd have to clear a path, but it'd be even better if they could...explode the whole place up and take all the zombies with it. It'd make a bigger commotion and would bring more but only after a while, so it was a safe bet.

Even though he ran up and down, right and left, getting all the things, carrying the heavy greenhouse supplies, the tanks, the reservoir, the solar panels, he felt...fine. Aside his right arm, he felt like he'd never been better. Like he'd never...been crippled on his right side. Now that he noticed...his permanent headache was...gone? Because he had only been paying attention to it while it'd racked up in pain, he hadn't noticed... This sickness that got on them...could it be making them stronger? Mutating them in some way?

Thankfully both the RV and the Hummer were in their garage, otherwise there'd been no way they could have loaded everything. When he returned to the front, the zombies seemed to not have moved at all even though the stench of rotting corpses was everywhere and everyone looked tired, sweaty bangs plastered on their foreheads.

"I have an idea," Takashi said and threw an iron pole through one of the zombies badgering his grandma. "We're surrounded by zombies, we need to clear way. On the back they're swarming the fence so we could electrocute them if the solar panels have been charged and one of you can make it work. While these ones it'll have to be with grenades. Of course I also thought we could put a bomb and explode with whole house."

His grandma turned to him, eyes open wide with horror. "You want to destroy the house we took so much pain and blood to buy? This is where your father grew up! This is where you grew up! Takashi!"

"Now, now, madam," Commander Holt intervened. "It maybe seem rash but, and this is a big but, it'd clear out all the zombies for a long while. The bunker would stand, so you could leave any relics down there. It's safer than molotovs or hand grenades, those might catch fire to them and us."

Grandma Shirogane flew away towards the family heirlooms, muttering under her breath. Takashi had to hurriedly take her place before one of the zombies at the window crawled through.

"I've been thinking that we need to bar these windows. We could be here for months before we cleared them," Katie grumbled.

Matt killed three zombies with one slash of a longsword. "We could make noise on the other side of the street or on the back of the house so they'll go around."

"Can't you hack one of the shopping hall TV's or something and make them blare out music?" Commander Holt inquired.

Katie's eyes shined. "Ooooh, that's also a good alternative and it'd be fuuuun. I tried it once for fun and got in," Katie said smuggily. When she saw Commander Holt's expression, she hurried on," Don't worry, don't worry. I didn't do anything, just got in and out. Promise."

Commander Holt shook his head with a big sigh, and waved her off. "Go on, do it. And quick, I can take your place but not for long."

For what was probably minutes but felt like hours, they hacked and slashed and fought against the zombies grabbing at them. When a loud song started playing frenetically, the zombies stopped in place and slowly turned around but didn't leave.

Hurrying while that was happening, they moved the furniture in front of the windows. It wouldn't last forever, but it was enough for what they needed. They were all packed, ready to go. They just needed a way to be able to get the garage open and move the vehicules through a mass crowd of zombies.

"There's a problem," Katie said.

"Just one?" Takashi raised his brows.

Katie glowered, "Haha, very funny, Shiro. Shut it. Your RV is so full of things it can't house us. We need our RV too or we are bust, even with the Hummer and the Jeep it won't be enough."

"I have the perfect solution. Let's explode the house like Shiro wanted, that'll give us time to get to our house and load our RV and go on our way," Matt thumbs-upped with a grin.

"I _gueeeess_ ," Katie pouted, wiping her forehead with a towel. "Someone will need to throw grenades from the upper parts of the house so we can leave. Then they'll have to jump down or find a way to go through the front door to where we are."

"I'll do it. I've rested the longest and am the freshest," Takashi said, smiling.

"No. I will be doing it," Grandpa Shiro's voice warbled as he hobbled in.

"But grandpa-"

"No, Takashi. Look," Grandpa showed the side of his neck where...Takashi turned deathly pale when he saw the fetid scratches.

"N-no," Takashi said, voice breaking and hoarse.

"I will stay behind and deal with them, you go and take your grandma."

"If you don't go I'm not going," Grandma Shiro's voice sounded from the kitchen door.

"Don't say nonsense, how can I go restfully to my grave knowing our son is alone in this world with his family?" Grandpa Shiro spat into the sink.

They had a duel with their eyes, wrinkled hands gripping hard on a granite counter and the other pair on a wooden door. Takashi had never understood if it was that if one of them looked away lost, or what.

"I will go, but I will not forget you. I shall get revenge," Grandma Shirogane assured Grandpa, and left.

Katie and Matt gave him the grenades, and also the grenade launcher, plus some molotovs and a makeshift bomb.

"Now-" Katie started.

"No need for instructions, I will make do. Now everyone out. Take your parents, Takashi, they will understand," Grandpa said and turned his back to them.

+++

Back in the Holt's garage, they saw zombies blasted apart into goo on the pavement as Grandpa Shirogane rained hell upon them. The RV's were loaded, the Hummer and SUV ready to go. Both houses were picked clean, Grandpa made a good distraction for them. Takashi couldn't bear to know and see his Grandpa die. His eyes misted over, his right arm trembled non-stop from the stress.

Matt put a hand on his shoulder. "We gotta go, Shiro."

Takashi swallowed down all the words, thoughts and emotions threatening to spill into a lump permanently lodged in his throat that refused to go down.

They got on the vehicles and tires squealing barreled down the street passing by mobs walking in the direction of the Shirogane's house. A few blocks away from their house, a huge explosion shook the town, throwing everything loose inside the RV's onto their faces. A huge billow of smoke rose non-stop forming a mushroom of ash, death and Grandpa. Takashi cried silently since he was driving their RV and no one was there to see him crumple inside.

If only he'd woken sooner, done something more...just more. Takashi punched the steering wheel until both his hands felt just as numb as his stuttering lungs from not breathing. If he breathed he'd make noise, the sobs would travel back to his Grandma. He had to be strong, for them, for his Grandpa. They couldn't be weak, they had to be stronger from here on out. His family depended on that, on him. And Takashi swore he will do it. He'll do whatever to keep the last remaining family he had safe.

 

**Author's Note:**

> I wrote this as a prologue but decided it works well as a chapter 1 too. It's all over the place and probably a bit messy because I didn't write it all in 1 go. Feel free to point inconsistencies in time, grammar, characters being OOC etc cause this was NOT beta read haha...  
> TBH I'm posting this because I'm intimidated by this story because there's a lot I want to write in this. So yeah this is a WIP.  
> I'm intimidated by the scope of this fic, and I want it to be written good, so I'm hoping having readers/people commenting they want more would inspire me to write more of it. I have SO many sheith WIP's tbh, I'm whipped for them. I'm writing like 2 or 3 RPG/MMORPG sheith stories, but dunno when I'll consider them done or that I have 1 full chapter to start posting.
> 
> This is heavily influenced by Chinese web novels zombie apocalypse stories with cultivation. I'm super into Chinese fantasy nowadays, they're super unique and refreshing. Come talk to me about them in the comments~
> 
> I'm also at  
> Website: https://amongthedeep.weebly.com/  
> Twitter: https://twitter.com/amongthedeep  
> Blog: https://amongthedeep.dreamwidth.org/


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